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A Lake County sheriff's detective did nothing wrong by leaving his gun and other law-enforcement equipment in his unmarked department-issued pickup truck, an agency spokesman said Wednesday. The detective reported his .45-caliber Kimber handgun, Taser, Motorola portable radio and handcuffs were stolen Tuesday. He had been attending specialized training in Orange and Polk counties and last saw his gun and equipment on Feb. 27, sheriff's spokesman Lt. John Herrell said. He said the detective, who believes he locked the vehicle, didn't know what day the equipment was stolen but discovered the items were missing at his Eustis home. Investigators have no leads at this time. ...

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A Lake County sheriff's detective did nothing wrong by leaving his gun and other law-enforcement equipment in his unmarked department-issued pickup truck, an agency spokesman said Wednesday.
The detective reported his .45-caliber Kimber handgun, Taser,...

Racial politics have entered the Winter Park mayor's race — a contest already heated because of a flood of money from outside groups.
The two candidates, Commissioner Steve Leary and former Circuit Judge Cynthia Mackinnon, have each raised more than...

Orange County Deputy Scott Pine was shot and killed a year ago this week with a handgun that never had been reported stolen.
Three weeks after Pine's funeral, the weapon's owner still thought it was tucked away for his protection. That's when...

The Experience Christian Center, along with The Hope Church of Orlando, The Kingdom Church, and Impact Church are hosting a joint 10 a.m. screening of the movie "Selma" on Saturday, Jan. 24, at AMC West Oaks 14, 9401 West Colonial Dr., Orlando....

After 10 years of compiling a list of the "Most Powerful People in Central Florida," I decided it was time for a change.
Partly because the list didn't change much from year to year. Partly because some of the people on the list had power but...

After an Orange County deputy shot and wounded an unarmed man last week, one of my reactions was sympathy ... for the deputy.
Perhaps that sounds strange.
But if Sgt. Robert McCarthy — a nine-year veteran with a stellar record — did exactly as he...

TALLAHASSEE — Another statewide election disaster has presented another opportunity to study whether Florida Democratic Party headquarters will collapse into a black hole. A year ago, it seemed like they were on a heater: a gubernatorial candidate with...

The Orlando Police Department's former chief said in a recent deposition that he participated in "milk runs," in which on-duty officers would cruise city streets looking for attractive women.Former Chief Paul Rooney made the statements during...

Here are your stories for Wednesday: Thanksgiving food and thoughts; holiday travel; sea turtles; redistricting process; and more.
1. As today is the "biggest travel day of the year," holiday travel is expected to be a mess. Enjoy your time...

Stung by the Nov. 4 election, Florida Democrats are turning to two Central Florida leaders, U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson and former Orlando police Chief Val Demings, to try to figure out what went wrong.
The duo will lead a task force examining the machinery...

TALLAHASSEE – Florida Democrats held a conference call Tuesday to try to find the sunny side of an election drubbing that saw the defeat of many of the party’s rising stars.
U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson blamed the U.S. Supreme Court’s Citizens United decision...

If you hate the barrage of political TV ads lately, don't blame your Central Florida member of Congress.
Records show that none of them — nor any of their opponents — has spent a dime on TV commercials this year. It's another sign that all five...

Former Orlando Police Chief Val Demings and U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson have agreed to lead a new Democratic Party task force essentially tasked with figuring out what went wrong in the Nov. 4 general election and what can be done about it.
The Democrats got...

Long before federal authorities arrested young hotshot hotelier Nik Patel on massive fraud charges this month, there were plenty of red flags about Patel's background.
His résumé was full of holes.
He claimed to have graduated from the...

Nikesh A. "Nik" Patel, the hotelier and banker hit with federal fraud charges, has been a prolific political donor this year.
Campaign finance records show the 30-year-old head of Alena Hospitality and CEO of First Farmers Financial has...

Legal troubles mushroomed this week for Orlando businessman Nik Patel, who had gainedprominenceduring the past two years renovating Central Florida hotels.Patel, 30, was arrested Tuesday on federal allegations of fraudulently selling...

If you move away from Central Florida, almost nobody will get your reference to the Appliance Direct guy. Or John Arie, Jr. of "It's HUGE!" fame. Or Orange County Mayor Teresa Jacobs.
These are our celebrities. They're our elected officials....

TALLAHASSEE -- Democratic gubernatorial hopeful Charlie Crist turned to voter-rich South Florida Thursday to tap a running mate.
Crist's campaign announced he had picked Annette Taddeo, a Colombian-American and chair of the Miami-Dade...

TALLAHASSEE -- The Florida Legislature's Republican leaders said Tuesday they would re-draw two unconstitutional Orlando-area congressional districts provided the courts allowed the new map to take effect in 2016 instead of in this year's...